MSOC | Conner Earns First-Team All-WCC Honors
11/19/2013 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
SAN BRUNO, Calif. -- First-team selection Bobby Conner is among four Saint Mary's men's soccer student-athletes named to 2013 all-West Coast Conference honor teams, the league office announced today.
Conner is one of four defenders on the all-WCC first team and the only player from Saint Mary's. Senior Justin Howard, sophomore Michael Semenza and freshman Alex Braman each earned honorable mention honors, while Braman was named to the league's all-freshman team.
A junior from San Rafael, Calif., Conner is one of three Saint Mary's players to start all 20 matches this season. He scored three goals and provided one assist on the season. Conner scored twice in the Gaels' 2-0 victory last weekend at Portland."Bobby had a phenomenal year for us," said SMC head coach Adam Cooper, who has coached 16 players to all-conference recognition. "He played solid in every aspect of the game and, I believe, he is the best centerback in our conference. He is certainly deserving of first team all-conference and I'm happy he's been rewarded with the recognition."
Braman, along with his twin brother, Ben, joined Conner as a full-time starter for the Gaels in all 20 matches during the year. The Niwot, Colo. native led the team in scoring with 11 points and a team-high five goals. Two of his five goals were game-winners, both coming against San Francisco. He tied for fourth in the WCC in goals in conference matches.
"Alex is very deserving of being on the all-freshman team and, I think, he could easily have been a second-team all-WCC recipient," said Cooper. "He finished tied for fifth in points and tied for fourth as a freshman centerback. That says a lot about the type of freshman year he had."
Howard, a native of nearby Livermore, Calif., appeared in all 20 matches this season and scored twice for the Gaels. He has 73 appearances and scored eight times during his four-year career and is also a WCC all-Academic Team selection.
"Justin deserves the recognition simply because of the type of player he is," said Cooper. "He is relentless, hard working and strong. People hate playing against him because he works so hard. He might not have the stats of some of the guys recognized on the all-conference team, but he deserves the honor."
A native of Encinitas, Calif., Semenza scored three goals and provided four assists and was the team's second-leading scorer with 10 points. He tied for fifth in the league in points, sixth in goals and second in assists in conference matches.
"Michael had a very good conference season and he really stepped-up his game once the league schedule began," said Cooper. "He finished tied for sixth in goals and second in assists, which shows he had a really productive conference season."
2013 ALL-WEST COAST CONFERENCE FIRST TEAM
| Player | Yr. | Pos. | School |
| Connor Brandt | Jr. | F | San Diego |
| Robert Conner | Jr. | D | Saint Mary's |
| Nick Hamer | Sr. | M | Gonzaga |
| Vegard Karlsen | Sr. | M | San Francisco |
| John McFarlin | Jr. | M | Loyola Marymount |
| Carlos Montes | Sr. | M | Santa Clara |
| Craig Nitti | Jr. | D | Loyola Marymount |
| Adrien Perez | Fr. | M | Loyola Marymount |
| Josh Phillips | Sr. | D | Gonzaga |
| Julian Ringhof | Sr. | D | San Diego |
| Eddie Sanchez | Fr. | M/F | Portland |
2013 ALL-WEST COAST CONFERENCE SECOND TEAM
| Player | Yr. | Pos. | School |
| Miguel Aguilar | Jr. | F | San Francisco |
| Paul Blanchette | So. | GK | Loyola Marymount |
| Ryan Caballero | Sr. | GK | Gonzaga |
| Matthew Coffey | Fr. | M | Portland |
| Mark Daus | Sr. | D | Santa Clara |
| Torrey DeArmas | So. | M | San Diego |
| Juan De Rada | Jr. | M | Loyola Marymount |
| Mauricio Diaz De Leon | Sr. | M | San Francisco |
| Harrison Hanley | Sr. | M/F | Santa Clara |
| Clark Phillips | Jr. | F | Gonzaga |
| Sean Sears | Sr. | M | Loyola Marymount |
2013 WCC Honorable Mention Selections
Conner Bevans, Gonzaga; Derek Boggs, Portland; Alex Braman, Saint Mary's; Greg Carter, Gonzaga; Michael D'Arrigo, San Diego; Ryan Felix, Loyola Marymount; Connor Gaal, San Francisco; Elijah Galbraith-Knapp, San Diego; Justin Howard, Saint Mary's; Liam Kelly, San Francisco; Lars Ludwigs, Gonzaga; Jack McCracken, Loyola Marymount; Kendall McIntosh, Santa Clara; Hugo Rhodes, Portland; Dylan Seedman, Loyola Marymount; Michael Semenza, Saint Mary's; Joshua Smith, San Francisco; Keegan Smith, San Diego
2013 ALL-WEST COAST CONFERENCE FRESHMAN TEAM
| Player | Pos. | School |
| Alex Braman | D | Saint Mary's |
| Edson Cardona | F/M | Santa Clara |
| Matthew Coffey | M | Portland |
| Christian De Luna | D | San Francisco |
| Mark Dotseth | D | Loyola Marymount |
| Connor Gaal | GK | San Francisco |
| Jakob Granlund | F | Gonzaga |
| Parker Holland | M | Santa Clara |
| Adrien Perez | M | Loyola Marymount |
| Eddie Sanchez | M/F | Portland |
| Michael Turner | M | San Diego |
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